Lilia's Tale

Chapter 57: Training

Thinking further upon these conflicted feelings pushed me to find a solution, although it felt quite childish. If I was bitter that I could win simply because I was many times stronger than my opponents as a dragon, I simply had to learn to fight enough that I would be able to attribute my successes to my experience and training rather than my talents.

As I confirmed this idea, I noticed that Father was now surrounded by everyone from the arena. I found it quite pleasant to not have to bother with notoriety, and made my way back towards the wall to think on how to learn efficiently.

Waiting for school was definitely a possibility, but I had no guarantee on what was to come. I could be taught how to fight, as I could be taught no more than simple magic. Being in the first year, the second option seemed more likely, so I had to find an alternative.

Asking for special training to my eventual teachers wouldn't help me in any way, as they would be very likely to refuse, and it would put too much attention on me. That meant I had to learn as much as I could for the month-or-so I had so any fight that would happen by then would be easier on me.

Having decided on what I had to do, I now had to find how to do it. As I looked around hoping to find someone to teach me, I noticed Father coming over.

"Don't worry, you did a good job as well," he said.

"Did I really, though?"

"Well, the use of wind magic to remove the flames was good."

"Isn't that kinda basic though?"

"W-Well, I can't say it's an advanced technique, but the fact you came up with it on your own is quite notable in and of itself."

I simply sighed as a response. While it was obvious that Father was attempting to cheer me up and make me not feel left out, it was having the inverse effect. All I could tell was that I needed significantly more practice, considering the first highlight that was thought of was something this basic.

"Then again, it's your first time in a real fight, right?"

"Technically not. There was the fight against the two A-rank adventurers from before."

"And how did it go?"

"I more or less stampeded all over them."

"Considering what I saw today, they don't sound very strong."

"I agree they didn't really feel strong. Unlike these people today."

"Well, it's good for you to lose sometimes as well. It helps you become stronger and motivates you."

"Yeah, that's true. You can only enjoy victories if you tasted defeat."

"Exactly! So, let's take today as a learning experience and work harder, yeah?"

"That's what I planned in the first place."

Father smiled and nodded, then went back to the group and dismissed it. Everyone went back to their own training as Father came back to help me with mine.

"So, what should we do now?"

"I'm honestly not quite sure. I was too deep into the battle to really know what was wrong with me."

"For having watched, it seemed like you were too slow in your decision making. That's why you got hit in the first place. Afterwards, you didn't know how to get off from having to follow the opponent's pace, so it's normal you couldn't do much of anything considering it was much too fast for your inexperienced self."

"Yeah, I was a bit lost when I kept getting hit."

"Well, even if your body is sturdy, your main strength is your magic. So I think when you find yourself in bad situations, you should try to create some distance. That would not only allow you precious time to think, but also give you space and time to cast magic."